Augmented reality (AR) technology involves modifying a view of a real-world environment (also referred to herein as a “scene”) to enhance the viewer's perception. This can be done, for example, by presenting various AR elements to a user such that the AR elements are incorporated into the user's experience of a scene. By incorporating these AR elements, the user's experience of the scene may thereby become enhanced. Examples of these AR elements include computer-generated data, text, images, sounds, haptics, or the like.
AR technology may take the form of electronic devices, including wearable devices (e.g., smart eyeglasses), mobile devices (e.g., smartphones), tablets, or laptop computers. These AR devices may perform AR functions. For example, a pair of smart eyeglasses may include a transparent display capable of presenting various visual AR elements. When a user wears the smart eyeglasses, the display may be positioned in between the user's eyes and the scene that the user is viewing. As a result, the AR elements presented on the display of the smart eyeglasses may be overlaid on top of and/or incorporated into the user's view of the scene.
To illustrate, a user wearing a pair of smart eyeglasses may be sitting at a beach. While the user is looking at the ocean, the display on the eyeglasses may present a blue color filter over the user's view of the ocean to make the ocean appear to have a deeper blue color. The display may further present various data about the ocean next to the user's view of the ocean, including the ocean's name, surface area, lowest depth, temperature, etc. The pair of smart eyeglasses may also include speakers next to the user's ear that may play ambient sounds of ocean waves and birds to further add to the immersive experience.
As previously mentioned, mobile devices may similarly support AR functions. For example, a smartphone (including a camera that collects sensory data, such as imaging data, about a scene) may present a view of the scene on a screen to a user of the smartphone. The smartphone may then modify the presented view of the scene, such as by presenting a virtual object as if it was placed on top of a real surface in the environment or presenting data next to environmental objects.
By providing these AR functionalities, AR devices may facilitate social interactions. For example, an AR device may display biographical information about various people that a user might encounter. An AR device may scan a person's face, determine identification information related to the person, and thereafter display some data about that person, such as his name, profession, age, interests, and/or contact information. Such information may be obtained via a general internet search or from various social networking systems. However, although some AR functionality currently exist, they have not been widely used to facilitate social interactions.